Newly appointed Industry and Commerce deputy minister Raj Modi has issued a warning to churches using factories in Bulawayo`s industrial areas as worship centres that they will soon relocate as government intends to revamp the city`s industry as part of efforts to revive the country`s economy.
In a post on his oficial Twitter account, Deputy Minister Modi, tweeted, “Praise and worship should be done in churches not factories. Factories are for workers and the manufacturing of goods and services”.
In a follow up interview with CITE, Modi said the ministry will embark on a long term plan to revive the industries.
“Most of these industries have been long shut down. As such the equipment that was being used in there is now out dated,” he noted
“There is need to procure new equipment. There is no way that we would be able to start up without first securing technologically advanced machinery”.
Modi said there was need for local companies to produce quality products in order to attract a wider market.
“Being abreast with the right equipment would enable us to produce quality goods. We are in desperate need of quality products so that we can be able to sell to a wider market,” he said.
“We still have a long way to go in as far as convincing the international market is concerned whilst at the same time our economy is desperate for foreign currency income generation”.
He added the ministry will work hard with other ministries to ensure there is maximum job creation to cater for the people who have now flooded the informal trading sector.
“We understand the economy is in a bad shape, the only way we can be able to ease things for them is to ensure that if they are driven off the streets they can at least have an alternative form of income,” the businessman said.
“At least once some of the industries are up and running, it would be difficult and unfair to remove them from the streets where they are earning a living”.
Modi described the timber industry as one that has a huge potential of generating the much needed foreign currency.
